Stars in Heaven
by greenleaf-in-bloom
Summary: Almost all over the free wizards are no longer free. They have been taken to the concentration camps. It's up to a few to save them.


Stage One   
  
The first, hopefully, in the Stars in Heaven cookie-series, to be made into a short story. Many students have been taken to the concentration camps, and it is down to the last six people at Hogwarts who are not Death Eaters to save hundreds, with the aid of one Death Eater.   
  
"Is everyone here?" Snape asked briskly. His dark eyes were not cold as usual, but worried and tense. He looked like he was about to explode any moment. "Mr. Crabbe, Mr. Weasley, Miss Chang, Mr. Macmillan, Mr. Creevey, Miss Patil. Is everyone ready?"   
  
"Yes, Professor," the six of them said. Their voices echoed his eyes - tense and frightened, but determined.   
  
"You damn well better be," the potions master said, his voice lowering. "It's down to the seven of us now. If any of you are taken, I can't imagine there will be any hope left. We're all that's left. Mr. Weasley, if you would…?"   
  
"Right," Fred said briskly. "I hope you all realize that you can't help anyone captured. We've lost brothers and sisters and friends and parents to them, but we can't let go - we need to get them back." He pulled out a scrap of parchment.   
  
"What, pray tell, is that, Mr. Weasley?" Snape asked quietly.   
  
"I think you already know, Professor," Fred answered cooly.   
  
"That belongs to Potter."   
  
"I got it from his trunk. Thought it might come in handy. This is a map of Hogwarts, telling the true location and identity of everyone here."   
  
"Not very many people," Dennis muttered. "Those that are are all Death Eaters."   
  
"Malfoy, Vector, Costello, Starr, Shore, Miller, Davies, Bulstrode, Parkinson, Goyle, and Christiensen. And all the other Death Eaters," Dennis read over Fred's shoulder.   
  
"Almost everyone has been taken to Losbro-Apache, the fourth concentration camp," Fred agreed. "There are very few people in the second, and I'm afraid that they will have to wait."   
  
"But Parvati's in there!" Padma burst out, eyes desperate. "They could be dying!"   
  
"I know how you feel, Padma, but -"   
  
"No, you don't! How could you?"   
  
His eyes flashed with pain and anger. "George is in Rocke-Stevers too," Fred answered in a soft, dangerous voice. Padma fell silent. "All right. Crabbe, you're with Cho and Ernie. Padma and Dennis, you two are with me. Professor, will you be with one of our groups?"   
  
"For the second stage - entering the concentration camp itself."   
  
Fred appraised the five other students. "Go with their group, then, please."   
  
"As you wish."   
  
"All right. Now, Losbro-Apache is large and crowded, but I have a way to get through there as well as the school without being seen."   
  
"Mr. Weasley?"   
  
"I believe you have several draughts of Invisibility Potion, Professor?"   
  
"But I thought they were illegal," Crabbe said uncertainly.   
  
"They are," Fred said unconcernedly.   
  
"I have enough for all of us, but it will only last three hours. That will not be enough to get everyone out."   
  
"We'll have to risk it," Fred said, shaking his head. "My group - group one - will enter through the East Entrance at six o'clock. We'll liberate the group they're bringing in then, give them Portkeys - there are anti-Apparition charms all over, of course - and continue on. We'll go to the northeast, where they're keeping Harry and Ron and most of the Gryffindors. Almost half of the prisoners are there. It's the worst part."   
  
"And us?" Cho asked quietly, speaking for the first time since they had gathered.   
  
"Group two will enter through the South Passage half an hour earlier. It goes underground to the south-central part of the camp. You'll free and give Portkeys to all of those in the South - there aren't as many - as soon as it's six. You'll be in before, though."   
  
"What are you doing, Professor?" Ernie asked. His voice shook, and he didn't look up from his feet.   
  
"I?" Snape said, and laughed quietly. "I'm afraid I'm not going to tell you. If any of you are caught, the risk is too great. Let it be said only that today, the Dark Side will suffer a great loss."  
"It's six," Crabbe muttered under his breath to the other three - Professor Snape, the Chang girl and Macmillan. Macmillan groped out in the semidarkness, bumping into Cho, who was gripping Crabbe's huge arm tightly so that they wouldn't get seperated. "It's time to go in. Macmillan, do you have the Portkeys?"   
  
"Yes," the boy's voice said.   
  
"Where will they take them?" Chang asked.   
  
"To St. Mungo's. Most will be in bad condition. This place is awful." This was from Snape.   
"Then let's get out of this wretched tunnel."   
  
They came out into an awful scene. The sun was setting in shades of blood. There was snow blanketing the ground and the small, brokendown huts. Professor Snape tapped Crabbe on the shoulder. "Good luck," he whispered, and was gone before they could repeat the words.   
  
They could hear in the distance the harsh shouts and commands, but this part was relatively silent. The roads were unpaved, of course, just dirt. And quite empty. There were no doors on any of the huts. Crabbe looked into the first one and gasped aloud.   
  
Two Death Eaters stood over five huddled prisoners, all of whom he recognized in the dim torchlight. He also recognized the Death Eaters, of course. One was Matthew Nott, and the other was his father.   
  
He did not hesistate. He took out his wand, hearing Chang and Macmillan do the same behind him, and he and Chang said at the same time, "Stupefy!"   
  
His hit his father, and both slumped to the ground. "It's all right," Chang called out to the five stunned prisoners. "We're here to help."  
  
Macmillan gasped, recognizing the voice of Professor Sinistra, although he had not before recognized her face. "Cho Chang?" It was tinged with disbelief and pain and weary shock.  
  
"And Vincent Crabbe and Ernie Macmillan," Cho whispered. "Shh. Ernie, you have the Portkeys?"   
  
"Yes. They'll take the five of you to St. Mungo's," Ernie said softly. His best friend Hannah was not one of the five. Along with Sinistra were Fleur and Gabrielle Delacour, a third year Gryffindor named Natalie MacDonald, and Millicent Bulstrode. He came forward touched the younger Delacour girl's shoulder (she was extremely young, and paler than usual, shaking hard). "I have it in my hand. It will activate in fifteen minutes. Be sure you're all touching it then!"   
  
"I'll take it," Sinistra said quietly.   
  
"Do you know where the rest are?" Crabbe asked roughly.   
  
"Yes," Fleur said, her voice clear. "Go to the next street and turn right. It is the largest building, close to the outer wall."   
  
"How many people are there?"   
  
"Ninety," Sinistra said softly. "Several are dying, nine already did. Professor Sprout… didn't make it. She tried to protect one of the students from her house. Your friend Hannah, Ernie. They…didn't give Jillian a chance."   
  
"Is…Hannah…?" Ernie croaked. His heart had stopped at the mention of her name.   
  
"She got knocked around a bit, but she's fine otherwise. She helped the injured ones, tried to comfort some of the dying ones…" Sinistra was crying now. "They…it's awful. Go, we'll be all right."   
  
"Who didn't make it?" Cho asked quietly.   
  
"Rose Spring, Luke Zabini, Seamus Finnegan, Erin Smith, Chelsey and Dedalus Diggle, Ian Scamander, and Orla Quirke."   
  
"Zabini?" Crabbe couldn't comprehend this. "Zabini didn't…he…"   
  
"I'm sorry," Sinistra said. Natalie let out a little sob - Cho happened to know that she and Orla Quirke had been extremely close friends.   
  
Crabbe, Ernie, and Cho turned from the hut, and with a chorus of strangled, "Good luck," all around, were gone.   
Fred could feel Padma's hand on his shoulder, and Dennis kept bumping into him. They edged along the walls next to the group of new prisoners or transfers. They were led by a cold-faced Lucius Malfoy and a sneering MacNair.   
  
"Ready?" he whispered to Padma as the enormous gates squealed shut behind them. Dennis winced at the loud clang. Padma drew her wand, and he did the same.   
  
He decided on the Reductor curse. He loved the opportunity to wipe that smug smile off Lucius Malfoy's face. It hit him full in the chest, slamming him back into one of the dirty huts and through its wall. Padma used a simpler Stunner, and MacNair crumpled. The four guards looked around wildly. To Fred's surprise, Dennis caught two of them with Stunners. Padma eliminated a third, and Fred reductored another who he had seen kick one of the little girls in the line.   
  
The prisoners seemed frozen and frightened. "It's all right!" Fred called out, loudly enough so they all could hear. "Cover us," he added to Padma in an undertone.   
  
"Who is it?" a familiar voice called out. He saw the red hair in the crowd, and then a filthy-faced and bleeding Charlie cut his way out, looking around for the speakers.   
  
"Charlie!" Fred exclaimed, and tossing his dignity to the winds hurtled over to hug his brother. "It's Fred, I've - we - oh, God, Charlie, are you all right? Have you seen any of the others?"   
  
Charlie looked down at his invisible younger brother. "I got seperated from Mum and Dad and Percy," he said quietly. "I don't know if Perce - they hurt him, Fred, they hurt him bad. They put the Cruciatus on him." He was hugging Fred too. "How did you get here?"   
  
"It's me and Padma Patil and Dennis Creevey, we've come to save everyone we can. We have Portkeys."   
  
"You'd better hurry. I heard that they have Ginny and Ron and Harry up at the north end. Give me six Portkeys. I'll distribute them to all of these here." He gestured to the gathered fifty witches and wizards.   
  
"They're to St. Mungo's - they activate in eleven minutes." He fumbled in his pocket.   
  
"Here." He took Charlie's hand and put the six random objects into his brother's hand.   
  
"Good luck, Fred. Don't do anything stupid. Be safe." He paused. "Did they get George?" he added quietly.   
  
"Yes," Fred said, forcing back hot tears. "He's in the second camp. We'd better go. You be careful. We'll do what we can - there's a second team in the south." 


End file.
